Just Another Day at Degrassi
by sundayxmorningx
Summary: What if Eli and Clare were best friends? What if they started falling for each other? It certainly isn't as easy as that! High school has obstacles & there are no exceptions. Scheming, fighting, love triangles/squares, the usual.
1. Back To School

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Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi.

A/N: I have a new story! I've actually been working on this for a while but I'm just posting it now. Heh. Review! Please and thank you :)

***Background: Just like the show, everyone is still in the same grade. Unlike the show, Sav and Eli are best friends. All other friendships are the same. Drew and Adam are the new guys, whereas Eli has been there since freshman year. I'm pretty sure the whole cast is involved in this story, whether it is briefly or as a major character.**

* * *

"Clare Edwards! We are going to be late!" Eli yelled through the living room.

"I didn't know you cared so much about getting to school early!" she yelled back.

"Correction: I care about finding parking at school," he responded.

"Relax princess, I'm here," she walked down the stairs.

"You girls take an obnoxiously long time…" he mumbled.

"Watch it, Goldsworthy. I feed you breakfast," she warned.

Eli kept his mouth shut – there was no denying Clare could cook the best blueberry pancakes.

With sheer luck, the pair found parking and made their way to the steps of Degrassi.

"Ahh Clare!" Alli Bhandari walked down towards her.

"Who's the new guy this time?" Clare laughed.

"Drew Torres," she answered, giving him a dreamy look.

Eli rolled his eyes and headed to Sav's direction. They had become good friends thanks to Alli and Clare.

"What's up man?" Sav gave him a fist bump.

"Not much," Eli looked at the boys next to Sav.

"Oh, this is Drew and Adam Torres," the eldest boy introduced them, "Drew is in your year, while Adam is a year younger."

The three all gave each other a nod.

"Eli."

Clare and Alli walked up to the boys.

"I'm going to hang out with Alli afterschool, so don't wait up, ok?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll see you later," he answered.

She gave his arm a squeeze, "Thanks."

Alli gave Drew a flirty smile, which he returned. The two girls walked into school with non-stop chattering.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Adam asked.

Eli turned to him, "What? No. She's my best friend… almost a sister."

Sav rolled his eyes when Eli wasn't looking. Adam seemed to notice and smiled to himself.

* * *

"So tell me about your summer!" Clare said.

"Oh my gosh Clare, New York is gorgeous. You would have loved it there," Alli answered, "The big city life, the great restaurants, the cute boys."

Clare couldn't help but laugh.

"Hey."

The girls looked up to see Holly J standing there.

"Hi Holly J," Clare greeted her.

"I know it's still early in the semester but I was wondering if your wanted to help out with the school play again," Holly J looked hopeful, "Declan loved what you did last year and I was quite impressed myself."

Clare was flattered by the compliment. She was planning on staying from Drama Club, considering she kissed Declan on the next last year. Holly J and Declan were going out at the time, but she let it go. They had broken up and she was now dating Sav.

"Sure, I'd love to," Clare responded.

"Thank you so much," Holly J sounded relieved, "With Fiona designing the costumes and you with the props, this play is going to be amazing. Did you want to help too, Alli?"

"I'd have to ask my parents," Alli answered, "They only want me involved with academic clubs, but I'll have Sav talk to them."

Holly J nodded, "Let me know. You're always welcome to help."

As she walked away, Alli remarked, "She has certainly gotten nicer."

Clare nodded.

"So how was your summer?" Alli looked at her best friend.

"Compared to yours, uneventful," she said, "I hung out with Eli for the most part. I did see Connor, Dave, and Wesley here and there."

"I think we need to get more girl friends…" Alli said.

"I'd have to agree with you on that," Clare agreed.

Alli linked arms with Clare, laughing as they made their way to class.

* * *

"Hey," Sav looked over to Eli, "You wanna come over for a jam session afterschool?"

"Yeah, sounds good," he replied.

The four boys were currently walking to their lockers.

"Oh, are you in a band or something?" Drew asked.

"Well, I was," Sav started to explain, "But we broke up when most of them went off to college. I play guitar and Eli plays keyboard."

Drew nodded, "That's cool. Adam recently picked up bass and never stops. I play drums and it drives our mom crazy."

"Really? Why don't you guys come over then," Sav sounded enthusiastic.

"Drew and Adam looked at each other.

"I don't see why not," Adam answered.

"Sweet!"

Eli smirked – Sav could get a little too excited over forming a band.

* * *

**A/N: Can anyone else picture Eli playing the keyboard/piano? I don't know, I can totally see this…**

Anyway, please review and tell me what you think! I probably won't be able to update as fast with this story because I've got a bunch of research papers to work on .

Thanks for reading!


	2. Naps Now, HW After, Play Later

**A/N: Wow! Thank you so much for the reviews, alerts, faves! That put such a huge smile on my face. You are all amazing!**

**Please keep the reviews coming! They make me happy.**

Happy Veteran's Day!

* * *

*Ring Ring Ring*

Eli groaned into his pillow. He valued sleep, especially on the weekends.

*Ring Ring Ring*

*Ring Ring Ri –

"Hello," he replied angrily.

"Morning!" a female voice said.

Eli peaked an eye at his clock. 8:07am. He groaned. Of course Clare would be up at this hour in a chipper mood.

"I'm coming over," she announced, "And I'm going to take that groan as a 'Why yes, Clare, I would love to see you.'"

Eli chuckled, "You know where the key is."

Clare hung up and started to get ready. It only took her 10 minutes and she was out the door. Her parents were already at work so she was free to do what she wanted, as long as her homework got done. She rode her bike and arrived at Eli's house in a matter of minutes. Eli's mom was just leaving for work.

"Hi CeCe," she greeted.

"Morning Clare," the adult smiled. Eli had inherited her green eyes and smile. His personality came from Mr. Goldsworthy.

"Eli is still sleeping," she pointed to the house, "Please make sure he doesn't sleep his whole day away and that he does his homework."

"That's what I'm here for," Clare showed her the schoolbooks.

Mrs. Goldsworthy laughed, "I'll see you later, Clare."

Clare gave her a wave and went inside the house, straight to Eli's room. She quietly opened the door and saw him sprawled across his bed. She tried to suppress a laugh.

"I can hear you, Edwards," Eli mumbled. He moved around to make room for her. She took a seat next to him.

"Your mom said not to waste your day sleeping," she said while poking him.

He flinched at the contact, "How about this: If you let me sleep for two more hours, we'll have a day filled with productivity."

"Ok, deal."

Eli felt shuffling to his left. He turned to see Clare getting underneath the covers. He stared at her.

She looked back at him, "Well, I'm not going to stare at you for two hours."

He smiled and shared his blanket with her. Clare got into a comfortable position and faced him. They made eye contact.

"I'm setting my alarm," she stated.

Eli rolled his eyes, "Ruin my fun…"

* * *

Two hours went by faster than Eli would have liked. Clare's phone had gone off and she was up and ready to go. He took a little longer.

"Grab your books," she said, "We're gonna do homework after breakfast."

After a few more minutes, Eli was up and met Clare in the kitchen. He poured himself some cereal and sat across from her.

"So what has got you all up in a rush?" Eli asked.

"I guess I'm just excited for the school semester," she shrugged, "Different classes, new people, different yearbook staff, a new play…"

"And what play is that?"

"Oh, you'll like this," Clare smiled, "_Little Shop of Horrors_."

Eli's eyes widened, "What? I love that play!"

Clare laughed at his reaction, "I know. You should help out. I'm sure Holly J would appreciate it."

"I'm pretty sure Sav is going to get suckered in to helping," he smirked.

She rolled her eyes, "They think no one knows about their little thing, but everyone does."

"Overtime Student Council Meetings my ass," Eli mumbled.

**(A/N: Real quick – I wrote this chapter when Holly J and Sav first hooked up at the dance. For some reason, I thought they were going to have a secret-friends-with-benefits thing. I didn't know that they were actually dating until later. But it's my story so I'm gonna make it this way! Yay!)**

He took the empty dishes to the sink and washed them. He turned to face Clare.

"What's the plan, chief? Any fun today or is it just filled with homework?"

She crossed her arms, "Work now, play later. Let's get our homework done now and we'll see what Alli and Sav are up to later."

"You're really going to listen to my mom, aren't you?" he questioned.

"Of course! She loves me because I keep you out of trouble," Clare remarked.

Eli sighed – it was going to be a long day.

* * *

**A/N: I know this chapter was short and slightly filler, but it was filled with EClare goodness. I was going to omit this but I thought it was necessary because they talk about the play, which has a slightly important role.**

Until the next chapter! I'll probably post that on Saturday.

Thanks for reading :)


	3. Degrassi History 101

**A/N: First, I don't own Degrassi. Second, thank you for your support! Third, did you watch the new ep of Degrassi? I miss that kind of stuff! The love triangles, trying to get the girl/guy, the awkward and embarrassing moments when coming of age... I would like to see more of that!**

**So the drama is slowly going to unfold. This is just like, an introduction. Italics sometimes means their thoughts.**

* * *

Eli grabbed his books in his locker before the bell rang. His day had only started and he couldn't wait for it to be over. Morty had broken down on him so his mom offered to drive him to school. Clare had gone with her mom and she had yet to arrive.

"Hey," a sultry voice came from behind.

Eli froze. _Damn_. He turned and put on a fake smile.

"Hi Bianca."

She smiled and took a step closer to him, "Listen, I know school is only three weeks in but I can tell I'm already going to struggle in History class. I was wondering if you could maybe, tutor me?"

Bianca looked at him with lust as she took another step closer. Eli let out an annoyed breath. He knew Bianca was lying – despite her "bad girl" reputation; she actually did pretty well in school, especially history.

"Sorry, Bianca, can't help you with this one," he answered, "Try asking Owen."

She looked shocked. She retreated and walked away without another word. As Bianca walked through the hallway, she saw Drew and Adam. She gave Drew a flirty smirk and batted her eyes.

Once she was out of earshot, Drew looked at Adam, "She creeps me out."

Adam laughed and went to his locker. Clare had seen the whole interaction and rolled her eyes. She walked over to Eli.

"What did Bianca want?"

He grabbed a few of his books, "She wanted me to tutor her in history."

"Speaking of history…" Clare scoffed, "You didn't accept, did you?"

"Of course not," he said, "After what she did. I'm not going anywhere near that cheater."

"If she doesn't get you back, she's going to go for some other guy. Like Drew, maybe," she said, "I saw her practically undress him with her eyes."

The pair looked over at Drew and Adam. Alli had joined them and kept her focus on Drew. He didn't seem to mind. Adam kept his focus in his locker.

Eli sighed, "We should probably tell them. I'm pretty sure Alli and Drew like each other, but that's not going to stop Bianca."

Clare nodded, "Let's go."

They walked over to the trio. Adam spotted them first and seemed relieved.

"Hey, Eli, Clare," he greeted them, "Who was the curly haired girl you were talking to earlier?"

Eli liked Adam – he wasted no time in getting the details on something.

"That was my ex-girlfriend, Bianca," Eli answered.

Alli and Clare both crossed their arms – it was clear that they didn't like her.

"I felt violated by her earlier," Drew shivered, "She's creepy."

"I'm going to smack her…" Alli started, but was cut off with Clare's warning look.

"So, bad history?" Adam asked.

"She cheated on Eli!" Clare blurted out.

Eli looked at her – _really?_

Clare looked back – _what?_

He continued, "She cheated on me with Owen last year. They had something going on for a few weeks."

"He found out about it when Owen tried to make a move on me but I kept rejecting," Alli chimed in, "Bianca walked in and saw Own hitting on me, then she walked away crying."

"Eli followed Bianca and overheard her talking on the phone," Clare explained, "She revealed everything."

"I broke up with her right then and there. I haven't spoken to her since," Eli finished, "Well, until now."

"Whoa," Adam replied, "Intense."

"There sure is a lot that goes on in this school," Drew commented.

"That's just some of it," Alli replied, "There's more."

"Don't get me started on K.C." Eli rolled his eyes.

Clare glared at him.

"I told you he wasn't good for you," he said.

"Just like I told you, Bianca wasn't good for you," Clare fought back.

"Touché."

"Wait, K.C. as in the one on the football team?" Drew had just joined the team.

Alli nodded, "Long story short: Eli hates K.C. because he and Clare went out for almost a year before K.C. broke up with her for Jenna."

"Then Clare got a crush on Declan and went all vampire fiction on him," Eli laughed.

Clare smacked him, "Holly J has dropped that and so should you."

"Holly J… the one who is always with your brother?" Drew looked at Alli.

"Yep," she confirmed.

"Whoa," Adam said again.

"Too much info?" Clare hesitated.

"Are you kidding me? This is so much better than our old school!" Adam exclaimed.

Eli smirked, "Welcome to Degrassi History 101."

"Everyone seems to be connected to one another," Adam continued, "It's like a tv show! This will keep me entertained while I wait for my comics to come out!"

* * *

**A/N: Hooray Adam! He's funny. So Bianca and Eli dated? That's just wrong. Haha. But at least it keeps this story interesting =D And with Bianca involved, of course there will be drama.**

**Please review!**


	4. Auditions: Girls

**A/N: Once again, thank your for your support in this story! I know I changed the title, but as I wrote all the other chapters in this story, I thought it needed a change.**

**I don't know much about auditions and plays so this might seem a bit inaccurate. If it is, I'm sorry… but it keeps the story flowing.**

* * *

"Let the auditions begin," Holly J took a seat between Fiona and Sav.

Since Holly J was director of the play, she was on the panel. Fiona was to her right and she was there due to her Broadway expertise. Sav was on the other side, since he was Student Council President and in charge of the music. Clare sat next to Fiona since she had a year's experience helping out with the play.

They focused on the girls' auditions today. Due to the popularity of the play, a lot of girls auditioned for the roles. The role of Audrey was between Anya and Heather P. As for the three singing girls, Chantay, Jenna, and a few others auditioned. They were now taking a ten minute break.

"So what do we think of Anya and Heather?" Holly J asked the three.

"I vote Anya," Fiona voiced, "Her accent was great and she can be both innocent yet sexy, which Audrey is."

"I agree," Clare added, "She caught our attention and made us empathize with her. I'm sure she could do the same to the audience."

Sav nodded and Holly J agreed, "Anya it is." She wrote it down.

"And how about the singing girls?" she then asked.

"Chantay, definitely," Sav started, "She has a great voice for Ronette and a personality to match."

"I liked Jenna's auditioned," Holly J said, "She was nervous but when it comes to singing, she has a presence."

Clare nodded. Despite their history, Clare knew to be fair and Jenna had a better audition compared to others.

"Alright, let's meet back in five minutes," Holly J got up. Sav quickly followed.

Fiona sighed, "They think no one knows."

Clare chuckled. She went outside and was greeted by Eli.

"What are you doing here?"

Eli pretended to look hurt, "No 'Hello Eli. It's so good to see you?'"

Clare rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Sav suckered me into helping with the music for the play," he explained, "He wants to meet up after auditions to give me the sheets and whatnot. Did you need a ride home?"

She nodded, "Please and thank you."

He smirked.

"So you're helping out? That's great. It'll be nice having a friend around," Clare said, "Alli is still trying to convince her parents."

"I overheard Connor, Dave, and Wesley say that they would help out with the technical stuff," he replied, "Although they were teasing Wesley about his crush on Anya."

"Well, the more hands, the better," she said.

Clare looked at her phone, "Oh, I better get going. I'll see you after auditions!"

She raced off to meet with the others. Eli shook his head and went to the library to sleep – what else was he going to do?

* * *

After almost an hour of auditions, the four were restless. No other girl was good enough to fill the role of Crystal. They were thinking of moving the girls around, but everyone agreed that Chantay as Ronette and Jenna as Chiffon was the only thing that worked. Just as they were about to call it a day, a voice spoke up.

"Are you still auditioning or what?"

The four looked to see Bianca standing there, with her arms crossed.

"Well?"

Fiona looked at her nails, "Attitude like that isn't going to get you anywhere in theater."

Bianca rolled her eyes.

Holly J ignored the exchange, "Are you here to audition? I don't see your name."

"Last minute," Bianca replied.

"That's not acceptable," Fiona smiled, "Sign ups have been posted for days."

Clare looked at her. She officially had a girl crush on Fiona Coyne.

"Let's just give her a shot," Sav interjected, "It's not like we have a lot to lose."

Clare and Fiona identically sat back in their seats, while Holly J and Sav looked on with interest. Bianca started.

_Little shop, little shoppa horrors.  
Little shop, little shoppa terror.  
Call a cop. Little shoppa horrors.  
No, oh, oh, no-oh!_

Bianca sang "Little Shop of Horrors" with ease, while doing choreography. The panel was a bit surprised – they had forgotten that Bianca was a dancer.

When Bianca finished, Holly J spoke up, "Thanks Bianca, we'll let you know."

She walked away with a triumphant smirk.

"She was good," Sav said.

Clare hated to admit it, but it was true. She fit the role of Crystal.

"She's unprofessional," Fiona commented, "I'll vote for her cuz she had what it takes, but she better not be late to rehearsals."

"Yeah…" Clare agreed.

Holly J bit her lip, "I guess Bianca is our Crystal."

With that decision, the four left the room. Clare thought it over – Bianca auditioned for the play. She never gets involved in school activities so why now? She shows up out of nowhere. Funny how she decided to audition right when Clare found out Eli would be helping with the play's music.

… Wait a minute.

* * *

**A/N: Uh oh… What is Bianca up to? Hm…**

**Review, review! …please? :) Seriously, I love hearing from the readers, I love hearing what you all have to say.**

**And more importantly! Have ya'll checked out the Degrassi Tumblrs? I just found out about it through HollyJSays and they're freakin' hilarious! YOU MUST CHECK IT OUT!**


	5. Auditions: Boys

**A/N: I don't own Degrassi.**

**Again, Italics means thoughts.**

**It has been a great week for me! Haha. So I'm going to post this chapter today. Then I'll post the next one tomorrow evening :D**

* * *

"She auditioned and got a role?" Alli asked.

Clare nodded, "But don't tell anyone. Boys are auditioning today. Then we're going to post the official cast tomorrow."

"What is this school coming to?" the brunette asked.

"I think Bianca only auditioned to get back with Eli," Clare told Alli, "Sav suckered Eli into helping."

"Really?" Alli was curious.

The redhead nodded, "She was trying to get him to tutor her last week, then out of nowhere, she auditions last minute? The same time Eli tells me he's volunteering with the music? It's just a theory, but it works. Plus, this is Bianca we're talking about."

Alli rolled her eyes, "She cheated on him. Eli would never get back with her."

"I don't know what goes on in that head of hers," Clare replied.

"Probably nothing," Alli mused.

The two shared a laugh and left the hallway.

Little did they know, Owen had heard the whole conversation. He had been around the corner and listened in.

He chuckled – _Bianca wanted Emo Boy again?_ Not that he and Bianca were official… they just had a thing here and there. He was still surprised that Bianca auditioned. _She was such a chick. Wait! Chicks loved theater stuff!_ Owen smiled to himself – why didn't he think of this sooner?

He walked over to the bulletin boards and saw that the Auditions were still posted. He wrote his name down. If Bianca wanted Emo Boy, then she could have him. Owen would have girls surrounding him in no time.

* * *

"Ready for another day of auditions?" Holly J took a seat next to Clare and for the boys were a lot smoother.

Not that many of them auditioned, making casting a lot easier. Out of all of them, Zane had the best audition. He wasn't looking to play lead. Holly J offered him the roles of Customer, Interviewer, Bernstein, Mrs. Luce, Skip Snip, and Patrick Martin for kicks. Zane loved the idea and accepted it. He was the only one who was told of his role since he had so many. The role of Orin went to Jamie Stone since he was the only one who could portray a mean, yet likeable character. The role of Seymour and Mr. Mushnik had yet to be casted.

**(A/N: I totally made that Jamie Stone guy up, I just needed a filler. As for Zane's role, they did that in my school and it was hilarious. And who doesn't love Zane? He's awesome!)**

"Next on the list is Owen Milligan," Holly J said.

"Owen?" Clare repeated. First Bianca, now Owen – what the heck was going on?

Owen confidently walked in. Clare looked at him oddly – seriously, why was he auditioning?

"Why are you auditioning?" Fiona asked, "I would think you would find theatre to be… too colorful for your taste."

Although Fiona and Riley ended in bad terms, they eventually reconciled thanks to Zane. She was fully aware of Owen's negative comments to the boys.

"A guy can change his ways," he smiled, "I've just found a new appreciation for the arts."

Holly J nodded, indicating him to begin.

_I've given you sunshine  
I've given you dirt.  
You've given me nothing  
But heartache and hurt.  
I'm beggin' you sweetly.  
I'm down on my knees.  
Oh, please-grow for me!_

The panel watched with interest – if they were surprised by Bianca, they were even more surprised with Owen.

When he was finished, the panel stayed quiet.

"Thanks for letting me audition," Owen smiled and exited the room.

"That was actually really good," Sav was shocked.

"Who knew he could be so… charming," Clare mentioned.

"I think he might be our Seymour…" Holly J said.

"Well, he did posses some likeable characteristics of Seymour," Fiona sighed, "He has my vote too, but he better be serious about this."

The panel stayed behind an extra hour to finalize the cast. This was going to be an interesting play to put together.

* * *

**A/N: I really don't think Jamie will play much of a role. I would have casted other Degrassi guys but I don't think anyone else fit the roles.**

**Please review and tell me what you think! I love hearing from you!**


	6. Rehearsals

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews and alerts! This story will definitely get more interesting. There's gonna be drama before there's happines... Haha.**

**Review? pls?**

* * *

Clare looked at the paper Holly J had just posted up.

_Little Shop of Horrors_ Cast List

Seymour…. Owen Milligan  
Audrey…. Anya MacPherson  
Mr. Mushnik…. Darren Byer  
Orin…. Jamie Stone  
Chiffon…. Jenna Middleton  
Crystal…. Bianca DeSousa  
Ronnette…. Chantay Black  
Customer, Interviewer, Bernstein, Mrs. Luce, Skip Snip, and Patrick Martin…. Zane Park  
Audrey II (voice)…. Sav Bhandari  
Audrey II (control/mechanical)…. K.C. Guthrie

*Practice will be in the Auditorium starting Monday, afterschool  
*For any questions, comments, concerns, contact Holly J. Sinclair immediately  
*Congratulations!

"Hey!" Alli came up to Clare, "So that's the cast?"

She looked closer, "Owen? He's the lead?"

Clare shrugged, "Yep."

Eli and Adam walked up to the girls.

"What are you looking at?" Adam asked.

They pointed to the cast list.

"Bianca auditioned and got a role?" Eli's eyes widened, "What the fu –"

"Eli," Clare warned.

"So are Degrassi plays a big deal?" Adam looked at them.

"Well, sort of," Clare thought it over, "Everyone gets involved and it gives us all an excuse to hang out with friends, while helping out with school."

"Cool," Adam said, "Count me in. My mom keeps bugging me to get more involved anyway, especially since Drew joined the football team."

"Help out with the music," Eli recommended, "Sav would be beyond excited."

"I can't believe Owen got the lead," Alli was still shocked.

"He had a great audition, surprisingly," Clare commented, "He was quite charming."

"Charming? Owen?" Eli scoffed, "Don't start falling for him now."

The redhead rolled her eyes, "I'm not. Gross. I'm just saying, he brought out a different side to him."

"He's probably just trying to get into a girl's pants," Alli mumbled.

Eli agreed and Adam laughed.

"Well, he better watch himself. Holly J can be quite the director and Fiona is pretty tough, too. She practically tore Bianca off at auditions," Clare gushed.

"First Declan, now Fiona?" Eli smirked.

"Eli!" she smacked him.

"Ow! Just saying…" he rubbed his arm.

**(A/N: Again, I don't know how plays really work so please bear with me… Thank you.)**

* * *

The first two weeks of practice were pretty light. The cast started off with a read through, while the crew worked on their respective fields. By the third week, the cast were not on stage learning stage directions. It was actually quite a sight to see them act it out, especially Owen. Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch him and Anya perform "Suddenly Seymour."

[SEYMOUR/OWEN]  
_Tell me this feeling lasts till forever  
Tell me the bad times are clean washed away_

Anya kept her back to Owen as he sang. He slowly turned her around so they were standing in a close distance.

[AUDREY/ANYA]  
_Please understand that it's still  
Strange and frightnin'  
For losers like I've been  
It's so hard to say  
__Suddenly Seymour_

Anya held his hand and led Owen stage right. She looked at him and smiled while singing the lyrics. Owen shyly looked at their hands and joined her._  
_

[SEYMOUR]  
_Suddenly Seymour  
He purified me  
He purified you  
_[AUDREY]  
_Suddenly Seymour showed me I can_  
[SEYMOUR]  
_Suddenly Seymour showed you you can_

Anya and Owen faced each other. She took a step towards him and he put his arms around her waist. She lightly put her hands on his chest. They sang the last three lines to one another.

[BOTH]  
_Learn how to be more  
The girl that's inside me (you)  
With sweet understanding_  
_With sweet understanding  
With sweet understanding  
Seymour's your man_

The song had ended and everyone had a smile on their face as they went back to their work.

"Um, Owen," Anya started, "You can let go of me now."

Owen gave her a wink and a smile before letting her go. Anya looked uneasy and quickly went over to Zane and Riley (who had dropped by practice that day).

"What was that about?" Bianca confronted Owen.

"That was me working my charm on Anya," he simply said.

Bianca narrowed her eyes at him.

"As if it's any different from you constantly looking at Eli and getting near him any chance you can?" Owen asked before walking away.

She watched him leave and sighed. Bianca focused back on Eli, who was currently talking to Clare. Bianca rolled her eyes – were those two ever apart?

"What happened to you?" Eli laughed at Clare.

She smiled shyly, "Alli accidentally got paint on me."

He looked at her – she had paint on her pants and arms. He couldn't help but laugh. Clare retaliated by grabbing some green paint and putting it on his cheek.

"Hey!" Eli sounded angry but was smiling.

She stuck her tongue out at him. He quickly grabbed some of the paint on his cheek and placed it on her nose. Clare gasped but responded with putting paint on his other cheek.

"Now we're even," she stated.

He gave her a smirk and walked away.

Bianca had seen the incident and glared daggers at Clare, although she wasn't looking.

"Aww… is Bee jealous of little Miss Edwards?" Owen's voice came from behind.

She scoffed, "I could take her."

Suddenly, Bianca came up with an idea.

"What's going on?" Owen reacted to her expression.

She turned to him, "You only joined the play to get girls, right?"

He laughed, "Duh."

Bianca continued, "What if you went for Clare?"

"What?" Owen looked at her funny, "But I've already got my sights on Anya."

"As if that's gonna happen," she replied.

"You just want Clare out of the picture so you can get Eli back," he said, "What do I get out of this?"

"A new play toy," she stated, "Clare is hard to crack, but imagine if you did? Plus, Eli doesn't like you. If you and Clare spent more time together… he would hate that."

Owen smiled, "Your plan sounds interesting… we'll see."

"Bianca!" Holly J's voice boomed, "Stage! Now!"

She quickly returned his smile and walked up to the stage.

* * *

**A/N: Ooh, Bianca and Owen… that's not a good combination… Is it weird that I found it fun writing the scene between Anya and Owen? Haha, Idk, I was just imagining it all in my head as I wrote it. **


	7. Be Careful

**A/N: Degrassi = not mine. Sigh.**

***I know this is a short chapter and I'm trying to make them longer, but sometimes it's hard to add more to it because it might not flow later. To make up for it, I'll post the next chapter tomorrow. Deal? Deal! :)**

* * *

The play was coming together nicely – the props were looking spectacular, the costumes looked like a professional designed them, and the cast had memorized most of their lines and stage direction. Holly J was relieved – she could still get a bit tyrannical, but she had calmed down a bit.

Bianca saw Eli sitting alone, looking at music notes.

She walked towards him, "Hey."

Eli looked up. He noticed her low cut top as she leaned down.

"Can I help you?" he sounded uninterested.

"I want to give us another shot," she said, "I miss you, Eli."

He laughed, "Of course you do. That's why you keep making out with random guys."

"I made a mistake," she looked at him innocently, "Besides, those guys don't make me happy like you did."

He rolled his eyes, "Save yourself, Bianca. I've moved and it's clear you did too when you cheated on me while we were still together."

Bianca sighed, defeated. She looked over at Clare.

"Clare's pretty," she stated, "Don't you think so?"

Eli looked confused, "Uh… yeah… she is…"

"She has only ever gone out with K.C., huh?" she asked.

"Yep," he sounded annoyed.

"Funny how she has thing for bad boys," she continued, "Especially those on the football team."

Eli gave Bianca a look. She nodded her head to Clare's direction. He looked over to see Owen talking to Clare.

_"He was quite charming…"_ her voice rang in his head.

Eli narrowed his eyes at Owen. Bianca noticed and smirked.

"I'll see you around," her voice sounded sultry.

"Do you need some help there?" Owen ran up to Clare and quickly grabbed the paint brush.

There was one spot she had trouble reaching and Owen's height helped her out.

"Thanks," she was grateful.

"Anytime," he looked at her briefly and smiled.

"Um… great job at auditions," she tried to make small talk, "And at rehearsals. You kind of surprised me with how well you could perform."

"Well, I'm full of surprises," he winked at her.

Clare's shyness suddenly kicked in – this was… new.

"There we go," he stepped back.

"Thanks again," she smiled.

"No problem," Owen kept his eyes on her, "You know, we've been working on this play a little over a month now and we have yet to talk."

She tilted her head to the side, "That's true."

"We should change that," he gave her one more wink then walked away.

Alli stood next to Clare, "What was that?"

"I'm not sure," Clare's voice was soft.

"Did he hit on you?" she questioned.

The redhead shook her head, "I don't think so. He was actually quite nice. He said he wanted us to talk more."

"He's bad news, Clare," Alli warned.

"Y-yeah, I know that," Clare snapped back into her senses.

"Just promise me you'll be careful when he's around?" the brunette asked.

"I will."

* * *

Eli kept an eye out on Clare for the rest of rehearsals. Owen didn't come up to her any other time, but he did glance at her. Whenever they made eye contact, they smiled. Eli didn't like it. Apparently, so didn't Alli. She would immediately get Clare's attention to get her to stop looking at Owen.

After rehearsals, Eli walked up to Clare.

"Let's hang out," he blurted out.

Clare was surprised.

"Best friend bonding time?" he suggested, "You love best friend bonding time."

She laughed, "Yes, I do, but I've got to finish up my homework."

"I'll keep you company," Eli offered, "I'll do my homework too."

"Well, you are giving me a ride home anyway," she said.

Eli smiled and followed her out.

* * *

"So I saw you and Owen talking earlier," Eli said.

He sat on Clare's bed as she put her laundry away and cleaned her room. Although he didn't see the point – her room was spotless, compared to his.

"Yeah, it was unexpected," she organized her books.

"What were you two talking about?" he asked, interested.

"Oh. Uh, I just told him good job at rehearsals," she answered, "He helped me paint something so I thanked him for that, too."

"Oh," Eli was relieved, "Ok. Cool."

"He also said that we should talk more," Clare mentioned.

"What?" he wanted to know why.

She took a seat on the foot of the bed, "I guess it's because we are going to work on this play for a while. He just wants to know everyone?"

Eli looked skeptical.

"I'll be careful, ok?" she read his mind, "I've already been warned by Alli."

He nodded – he made a mental note to thank Alli later.

* * *

**A/N: Is that possible jealousy coming from Eli? Clare and Owen, huh? That's… interesting…**

***Did you all see the TeenNick promo for the Degrassi 2011? I'm excited! Fitz is back and so is Alli. I've missed them. I can't wait to see what issues they're going to tackle next and what's in store for the characters!**


	8. Ask Clare Out

**A/N: Posting today :) I'm not as stressed out with my papers anymore so I can post more frequently. Hooray!**

***I know EClare is lacking, but I need it to go with the story. I try to add bits of it, though. Yeah...**

* * *

As Clare promised, she was careful of Owen's advances. It was innocent enough, though – he would talk to her about the play or compliment her. It was simple conversations. Eli still didn't like it and neither did Alli.

"Something just seems off about Owen," Eli said.

"I'm on the same boat," Alli agreed, "He's hitting on her but it's a totally different approach."

His head jerked at that last statement, "He's not good enough for Clare."

She faced him, "You don't think anyone is good enough for Clare."

"Because no one is."

Alli shook her head, "You sure are awfully protective of her…"

He cut her off, "Alli, it's not gonna happen. You watch and read too many teen romances."

"Just saying," her attention drifted, "Oh, there's Drew!"

Eli was relieved Alli left – she was a great girl, don't get him wrong, but she always tried to live out fairy tales. One that she constantly mentions is how she thinks he and Clare are going to fall in love. Yep, your quintessential "best-friends-falling-in-love" story.

Like that was going to happen.

* * *

Clare was on the ladder, rearranging some of the props. As she was lowering herself, her foot slipped. She wasn't too far from the ground, but the drop was still enough to hurt her.

"Whoa, whoa."

Clare only felt herself stumble as a pair of arms broke her fall. Once she had balanced herself, she turned to thank the stranger.

Owen.

"T – thanks," she whispered.

"It's no problem," he smiled down at her, "I wouldn't want you to get hurt now."

A blush started to form on her cheeks.

"I better get back on stage," Owen said, "Holly J can get impatient."

"Yeah, you don't want to anger her," she replied quietly.

He gave her one last smile and jogged over to Anya.

"Looks like someone has a crush on you," a female voice chimed in.

Clare turned to see Fiona standing there with a few costumes on her arms.

She shifted uncomfortably, "I seriously doubt he has a crush on me."

The older girl smiled, "I know a crush when I see one."

Clare blushed further.

"I always thought that Eli boy liked you," she said.

The redhead caught the comment, "What?" Oh, no. Eli and I are best friends."

"Oh sorry," Fiona felt guilty, "Way to make things awkward, Fiona…"

Clare shook her head, "Don't worry about it. We get that often."

Fiona gave her an apologetic smile. She walked past the young propmaster to see Holly J. Clare barely heard what Fiona said next.

"If you ask me, Eli is the better choice…"

* * *

During break, Owen and Bianca were in a corner, away from everyone else. Holly J tried to increase the camaraderie with the cast and crew, but eventually gave up on those two.

"I see you and Clare have gotten quite cozy," Bianca commented.

"What can I say? She's a real sweetheart," Owen replied.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "You're not actually falling for her, are you?"

He rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall, "No way. I mean, she's cute, but I can't be tied down. Well, except when it comes to you…"

Bianca stopped him, "Enough. We were never together. We're just a… thing. I'm supposed to be getting Eli back, remember?"

Owen groaned, "Yeah, yeah… Goth Boy… And how is that going?"

"It's progressing," she whispered.

He laughed, "You've gotten nowhere, huh? So much for this plan."

"It's tough, ok?" she snapped, "He's tougher to crack than I imagined."

Bianca had a thought.

"You need to ask Clare out."

"Wasn't that part of the plan?"

"You need to ask Clare out _now_."

"Now?"

"Either by today or tomorrow," she finalized, "And she needs to say yes."

Owen had doubts, "I don't think she'd be willing to go out on a date with me so soon…"

"Then don't say it's a date," Bianca hissed, "Just ask her to hang out. Say you need help with homework or the play. Something. I don't know."

He recalled – Clare was in 11th grade English. A lot of the Grade 10 kids were taking Grade 11 classes. It was like an epidemic.

"I'll see what I can do," he smirked to himself, mentally applauding himself.

* * *

**A/N: Again, Bianca and Owen are not a good combination. Oh, those two… **

**Next update should be on Tuesday!**


	9. Arguing Over Owen

**A/N: Degrassi = still not mine :/ If only…**

* * *

Clare sorted through her locker, looking for the appropriate books for her next two classes.

"Hey."

The voice caught her off guard.

"Owen? Hi."

He leaned against the locker, "So what class are you heading to?"

"Um, I've got history then science," she answered.

"May I escort you to class?" Owen gave her a slight bow.

Clare looked at him with shock, "S-sure."

He quickly went to her side and smiled. Clare tried to prevent a blush from forming.

"You're in Grade 11 English, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am actually," she was surprised her knew that.

"I was wondering," he started, "Do you think you could maybe help me out?"

Clare looked at him oddly.

Owen explained, "It's just that, my parents would ground me if I got another D on my report card. English has never been my strong subject…"

She remained silent – she was aware of her promise to Alli and Eli.

"Owen," she hesitated, "I wish I could help but I've – I've got a lot on my plate right now. With my classes, yearbook, the play…"

He held up a hand, "I understand. You're a busy girl with priorities… I admire that."

Clare was relieved.

"My offer still stands if you change your mind," he gave her a smile before walking away.

Clare stood by the door of her next class. She couldn't help but feel guilty for rejecting him.

* * *

"He asked you to tutor him?" Alli asked.

Clare nodded.

"Well what did you say?" she asked.

"I told him no," the redhead replied, "But a part of me can't help and feel guilty."

Her best friend shook her head, "You're too good sometimes. I think Owen will be ok."

"Well, his grades really haven't been the best," Clare mentioned, "And you know how Holly J is emphasizing the cast and crew to do well in classes."

"Are you considering his offer?" Alli questioned.

"I – well – I don't – no…" she said quietly.

Just then, Eli and Adam walked over to the girls. Clare and Alli stopped talking about the subject.

"Keeping up with the latest gossip?" Eli teased.

"No," Clare quickly responded, "Just discussing Media Immersion class, right Alli?"

She was temporarily caught off guard but quickly recovered, "Right. Media. Crazy stuff going on in that class. And Ms. Oh? She's quite the teacher…"

Eli looked at the girls oddly, "Ok…"

"So what's this I hear about Owen asking you to tutor him?" Adam asked.

"What?" Eli yelled.

Clare slightly glared at the younger boy, "Where did you hear that?"

He shrugged, "Drew – locker talk."

"You told him no, right?" Eli asked.

Clare noticed his cold tone, "Yeah, I said no."

He let out a breath, "Good. He probably just wants to get in your pants."

"Eli!"

"What? It's Owen," he said.

"Eli does have a point," Alli defended.

"And what if Owen really is struggling with English and just wants to get help?" Clare crossed her arms.

"I don't think so," Adam voiced.

The three looked at him.

"I think Owen likes you," he told Clare.

Everyone's eyes widened – none were wider than Eli's.

Adam continued, "Drew likes Alli and wanted to get closer to her. He has always struggled with math and when he found out Alli was basically a genius on the subject, he took this as an opportunity to hang out with her some more."

The three stood there processing the information.

"Maybe Owen had the same idea," Adam concluded, "He really could be struggling with English and like Clare. So in his mind, he'll be killing two birds with one stone: pass a class and hang out with the girl he likes."

Silence soon followed.

"I still think he's trying to get into her pants," Eli said.

"Why do you always assume the worst?" Clare's tone was sharp.

"Because it's Owen!" he groaned, "His motto is 'Hit It and Quit It.'"

"Do you not think that I can just tutor him?" she challenged.

"All I'm saying is that Owen is a lot more persuasive than you think," Eli replied.

"I can hold my own, Eli," Clare retorted.

"So you're considering tutoring him?" he was surprised.

"Maybe," she simply said.

Eli shook his head, "Godspeed, Edwards."

Clare groaned and walked away. Eli saw her action and walked the opposite direction. Alli and Adam watched the two.

Alli sighed, "You talk to Eli and I'll talk to Clare."

"Looks like it," Adam agreed.

* * *

Alli watched Clare pace back and forth.

"He thinks he knows everything! Stupid, frustrating, boy…"

The brunette rolled her eyes.

"You know Eli is just looking out for you."

Clare stopped pacing and faced her, "Are you defending him?"

Alli put her hands up, "Before you shoot lasers at me, just hear me out. Owen goes for anyone that has breasts and breathes."

The redhead was about to speak up.

"However," Alli interrupted, "I've seen the way he behaves around you. He's definitely behaving differently. Maybe he actually does like you."

Clare took a seat next to Alli.

"If you want to tutor him, go ahead," she said, "I'll be keeping an eye out on you, though."

"You two have a point – Owen could just be getting into my pants," Clare started to doubt herself, "Maybe I am being too good about this."

"Trust your gut," the brunette said.

* * *

"She's making a mistake," Eli cried out.

Adam sat quietly.

"I know how Owen works," he ranted, "He'll get what he wants then forgets about the girl. There is no way I'm letting him take advantage of Clare."

"What if Owen actually likes Clare, though?" Adam asked.

Eli gave him a look – _Are you serious?_

"Clare is a smart girl," Adam said, "I'm sure she knows what she is doing no matter which decision she makes."

Eli groaned in frustration.

"Fine," he conceded, "But if this blows up in her face, I'm going to be the first to say 'I told you so.'"

* * *

**A/N: Aww, a slight argument between Eli and Clare. Dang it, Owen and Bianca! **


	10. She Gets What She Wants

**A/N: So I was going to update this Thursday, but I got such a great response for the last chapter so as a treat and as an early Thanksgiving treat, I'm going to post this chapter now! I'm hoping I get the same response? Haha. Thank you, thank you for the support!**

**The next update probably won't be until Saturday…**

* * *

"Did you get her to tutor you?" Bianca asked.

"She said she was busy," Owen answered, "But I told her the offer still stands if she accepts."

"It has been a week!" she exclaimed, "Almost two!"

"Well I don't see you making any progress with Goth Boy!" he fought back.

Bianca suddenly smiled.

"Watch and learn," she winked at Owen before walking away.

She continued to talk until she spotted Eli at his locker. Bianca smirked as she made her way to him.

"Hey handsome," she cooed.

Eli let out a sigh, "What do you want, Bianca?"

"I was hoping we could hang out later," she suggested.

"There's rehearsals," he kept his tone indifferent.

"I meant after," she said, "With Owen being tutored by Clare after rehearsals, I don't really have anything else planned…"

Eli stopped what he was doing.

"Clare is tutoring Owen?"

Bianca looked at him, "You didn't know?"

"I thought she told him she was busy," he said.

"That's odd," she commented, "Why would Clare keep this from you? Aren't you two, like, best friends?"

"I thought so too," his voice was soft.

"Well, um, I'll be at my locker after rehearsals if you want to hang out," she gave him a small smile.

He nodded and walked away.

Owen saw the whole thing.

"You're horrible," he smiled widely.

Bianca beamed at his response – she always gets what she wants.

* * *

Rehearsals were normal. Everyone continued to do their part. The play was coming along smoothly. Clare and Alli worked on props near the stage. Owen was on stage and kept glancing at Clare. They would lock eyes here and there but she always looked away first. Eli, Adam, and Sav were in a corner, separated from everyone.

Clare kept close to Alli, "Any idea why Eli is avoiding me?"

The brunette shook her head, "He has been like that all day."

She sighed, "I hate it when he avoids me. I thought we were good again after I decided not to tutor Owen."

"Maybe he'll come around," Alli suggested, "Maybe he just needs some time with the guys."

Clare sighed once again and looked over at Eli before resuming her work.

* * *

"Are you sure she'd keep that from you?" Sav asked, "That doesn't sound like Clare."

Eli thought it over – he did get the information from Bianca.

"Try talking to her," Adam mentioned, "You know what happens when you assume…"

"It ends with Eli in the Principal's Office for punching K.C.," Sav laughed.

"I was going to say, it makes and 'ass' out of 'u' and 'me'," Adam said, "But that works too."

* * *

"Clare, Alli."

They turned around to see Holly J and Fiona standing in front of them.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come over my place after rehearsals," Fiona asked, "We have a lot more props and costumes to work on."

Clare and Alli looked at each other – they could definitely use some "girl time."

"Sure, we'd love to help," Clare smiled. Alli nodded excitedly.

Fiona looked relieved, "Great! We'll meet you at the front of the school a little after rehearsals."

The older girls disappeared. Alli couldn't help but squeal.

"Excited, much?" Clare teased.

"We're hanging out with Fiona and Holly J," Alli looked pleased, "Not only are they older, they're also popular. Therefore, we're close to being popular.

The redhead smiled – she was kind of excited too.

* * *

Eli saw Clare by her locker. She looked like she was in a rush.

"Hey," he said.

She jumped a bit, "Eli! Sorry you caught me off guard."

"Someone seems to be in a rush," he observed.

"Oh, heh, yeah," she continued to go through her locker, "I should have been gone by now."

She managed to jam everything in her bag. Eli was a bit bummed.

"Oh, so you don't have time to talk?"

Clare shook her head, "Sorry, Eli. I have to go."

She briefly hugged him before racing through the halls.

"Trouble in paradise?"

Eli turned around to see Bianca standing in front of him, her arms crossed.

"She looked like she was in a rush," she commented.

"I guess she had somewhere to be…" his voice soft.

"What a coincidence," she continued, "Owen was in a rush to leave after rehearsals too. He didn't even say bye."

Eli looked at Bianca. He seemed a bit heartbroken about the news.

"Did you wanna talk about it?" she closed the distance between them.

He didn't answer.

Bianca gently grabbed his wrist and led him away. Adam witnessed from distance – what was going on there?

* * *

**A/N: Ugh, Bianca! And Eli… why, Eli? Why? Please leave reviews. Reviews make me smile. Haha. Then keep an eye out for the next chapter!**


	11. Old Feelings Return

**A/N: I don't own Degrassi. It would be cool if I did, but I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon…**

***Thank you SO MUCH for the reviews! They are absolutely awesome!**

* * *

Eli was happy it was the start of a new school week. He wanted to forget about last week (especially the Bianca thing) and start new. He walked over to Sav, Adam, and Drew. They quieted down as he approached them.

"Hey guys," Eli greeted.

"Hey," Sav had a huge smile.

Drew nodded awkwardly at Eli's direction while Adam kept quiet.

"What's up?" Eli asked slowly.

"I should say the same to you," Sav replied still smiling. Drew snickered and Adam remained silent.

"Ok…" Eli commented.

"You and Bianca?" Sav used his eyebrows, "Boiler Room? Dude."

Eli's eyes widened, "Where did you hear that?"

"Me," Adam answered, "I saw you two last week."

"Nothing happened," Eli defended.

"Whatever you say, dude…"

"Adam! You have to believe me," he pleaded.

The youngest boy sighed, "They why did you go with Bianca to the Boiler Room?"

Eli scratched his head, "I don't know. I guess I was upset and I let my emotions get the best of me. I went in with Bianca and she tried to make a move, but if felt so wrong. I got out a few seconds after, I swear."

Sav put a hand to his shoulder, "All right, dude. We'll take your word for it."

Eli let out a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the hallways, Bianca waited for Clare to reach her locker. Once the redhead got there, she walked up to her.

"Hey Clare," Bianca greeted, "Have you seen Eli?"

Clare was immediately on the defense, "No, I haven't. Why?"

"Oh nothing," the curly haired girl replied, "It's just that we had a nice… talk the other day. Actually, there wasn't much talking… And we were in the Boiler Room so…"

The younger girl froze, "The Boiler Room?"

Everyone knew what went on in there.

"Just let him know I had a good "chat" with him and I hope we do it again," she gave Clare a once over and walked away.

Clare stood frozen at her spot. A flurry of emotions hit her – hurt, anger, betrayal, sadness… jealousy.

_Not again_ – she thought.

"Everything ok, C?" a female voice broke her thoughts.

Clare turned around to see Fiona by her side. "C" was her new nickname for Clare.

"I don't know," the redhead answered honestly.

"Uh oh, does this call for another girls' get together at my place?" Fiona suggested.

"I wouldn't want to intrude," Clare said.

The fashionista waved her hand dismissively, "Nonsense, I love having you girls around. It's like having a bunch of sisters without the unnecessary drama. Meet me at my locker after rehearsals."

* * *

As usual, the cast took the stage to rehearse while the crew worked on the floor beneath. Clare had told Alli about the Bianca incident and the two avoided the guys. Eli was the first to notice.

"Clare hasn't spoken to me all day," he complained.

"Do you think he knows about you and Bianca?" Adam asked.

"I don't even know," Eli sounded scared, "I hope not. Nothing even happened."

"Just talk to her," Sav suggested, "See what's up and clear the air."

Eli let out a breath. He cautiously approached Clare.

"Err, hey," he said.

She faced him, "Hey Eli. Um, I have to get to work over here and… yeah…"

"Are you avoiding me?" he asked bluntly.

Clare hesitated, "I've – I've just got a lot to do…"

Eli was persistent, "Clare, what's wrong? Whenever something is wrong, you keep yourself busy."

She fiddled with the hem of her shirt, "Did you and Bianca… did you two go to the Boiler Room last week?"

Eli's face slightly paled. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Clare got her answer.

"I should get back to work…"

"Clare, it's not like that –"

"It's ok, Eli. I get it. You two went out and maybe there are still feelings there."

"But I –"

"Clare?" Alli's voice cut in.

The redhead was relieved with the interruption.

"I'll see you tomorrow," she told him.

Clare walked over to Alli, leaving Eli alone.

* * *

Clare, Alli, and Holly J found a comfortable spot on Fiona's couch. The hostess was getting snacks and drinks from the kitchen.

"So what's going on, C?" Fiona had come back.

The redhead hesitated, "Um, well… I think Eli and Bianca hooked up in the Boiler Room."

"Slut," Alli faked a cough.

"I know he's my best friend," Clare continued, "And he's free to do what he wants, but I just thought he would know better than get back together with her."

The girls remained silent.

"When Bianca came up to me and told me about the Boiler Room thing, I couldn't help but feel… jealous."

"Clare," Alli spoke up, "Are you crushing on Eli again?"

"I think so?" Clare whispered.

"You had a crush on him before?" Fiona quietly asked.

The redhead nodded, "It didn't start until I got to high school. I've always been able to push the feelings away and I thought they were finally gone, but I guess not."

"Why don't you talk to Eli?" Holly J voiced.

Clare looked at her, "And tell him what? 'Hey Eli, I've liked you since freshman year and I still do. You want to give us a shot?'"

Holly J rolled her eyes, "Well, maybe not like that. But you two could talk it out so it's at least out there in the open and you can move passed this."

"Or our friendship will be forever awkward," Clare groaned.

"Well, you can't avoid him for too long," Alli said, "You two see each other everyday."

"I need to get rid of these feelings once and for all," he redhead stated.

Are you sure it will work this time around?" Fiona asked.

"I don't have a choice," Clare replied. She was going to keep busy and she knew just what to do.

* * *

**A/N: Review, please :) I won't be updating until sometime Monday? Will we be hearing from Eli? Hm…. Thanks for reading!**

**Oh oh, I've gotta say this again: nothing happened between Eli and Bianca. Ew, heck no!**


	12. Code Blue

**A/N: Your reviews make me smile oh so much! There will be some EClare interaction in this chapter, but wait until two chapters from now… That's all… :)**

***An anonymous reviewer pointed out that Jamie Stone is a combination of Peter Stone and Jamie Johnston. My answer is YES, I did do that on purpose! Lol. Shows how creative I am, huh? =P**

* * *

Owen grabbed his books from his locker as the school day began. He continued to rummage through his locker when a petite girl caught his eye.

"Er, hey, Owen," Clare spoke.

"Hey Clare," Owen flashed her a smile.

"Did you… still need an English tutor?" she asked hesitantly.

"Are you accepting my offer?" he continued to smile.

"Y-yes," Clare started to blush.

"It would be an honor," Owen replied.

She found the courage to look at him, "How does tomorrow at lunch sound?"

He nodded, "Perfect."

Clare blushed further and mumbled a "bye" before leaving.

Owen watched the redhead disappear around the corner and slightly chuckled. He turned his attention to Bianca, who was a few feet away. He gave her a wink. She smiled back – _perfect_. She made her way to class, but was stopped by Eli.

"Hey babe," Bianca cooed, "I had fun at the Boi –"

"Shut up, Bianca!" Eli snapped, "Nothing happened and you know it."

"Too bad Clare doesn't…" a smile started to form on her lips.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" his voice was rising.

"Oh come on, Eli," she caressed his arm, "Just give us a chance…"

Eli stepped back, "Give it up, Bianca! You and I will NEVER happen! You cheated on me!"

He started to walk away, frustrated.

"Are you going to look for Clare and explain everything to her? Too bad all of her time will be on Owen!"

Eli stopped in his tracks.

"If this is about the tutoring, I already know she isn't tutoring him."

Bianca crossed her arms and walked over to him, "Are you sure about that?"

"Yes," he said through gritted teeth.

She whispered in his ear, "Ask her. Just to be safe."

Eli heard Bianca's heels click away as he did all he could to stop himself from punching a wall.

* * *

Eli got to rehearsals early and saw that only a few people were there. One of them was Clare. He quickly jogged over to her.

"Eli, hey," Clare could sense something was wrong, "Are you ok?"

"I need to talk to you," he replied, "Privately."

She looked confused but nodded and followed him. They found a secluded spot in the hallway.

He spoke first, "Please don't tell me you're tutoring Owen."

"Oh," she looked down, "Well… I kind of am…"

"What?" Eli couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I spoke to him about it this morning," Clare kept her voice soft.

"But Clare, it's Owen," he reminded, "'Hit It and Quit it'?"

She sighed, "I'm helping a friend, Eli. I can take care of myself. Give me some credit."

"I know," he said, "But I don't trust him."

"But you can trust me, I'm your best friend," she answered.

"I really don't like this idea…" he continued.

"Well I'm doing it," she finalized, "He's a friend who needs help."

"I don't want you to help him!" he said.

"Why are you so against me spending time with him on English?" she asked.

"Because –" he stopped his sentence.

"Because what?" she asked.

Eli's eyes widened.

"I have to go," he walked past her.

"Eli!" she yelled.

He ignored her and went back to the auditorium. He scanned the room for a familiar face.

"Sav!" Eli ran over to the older boy, "Code Blue, dude! Code. Blue."

Sav started to choke on his water bottle.

* * *

-At Sav's house-

"So 'Code Blue' means, 'I'm falling for Clare?'" Adam repeated.

"Yes, Adam!" Eli replied.

The youngest boy put his hands up in response, "Sorry, dude."

Eli sighed, "Sorry about that."

"It's cool," Adam gave him a pat, "So why the term?"

"It was an inside term between Sav and I," Eli explained, "That way if other are around, they wouldn't know what we were talking about."

"Why Blue?" Drew asked, "Why not Red? Red sounds more urgent."

"Because the Blue refers to Clare's eyes…" Eli whispered – he always loved Clare's eyes.

The boys grinned to one another.

Eli noticed, "This isn't funny! I can't fall for my best friend!"

"Alli is going to love this," Sav mentioned.

"You will tell your sister nothing!" Eli snapped.

Sav laughed, "Just kidding, bro."

"Have you fallen for her before?" Adam asked, "Hence, the term?"

Eli fiddled with the ring on his finger, "When I first met her and got to know her. I was just intrigued by her, but it disappeared."

"Are you sure it's not just an "older brother" feeling you're having?" Drew questioned.

Eli shook his head, "I felt like this the first time around. The only other times I've felt like this was with Julia in middle school and Bianca."

The boys remained silent.

"What do I do?" he buried his face in his hands.

Adam spoke up, "Tell her how you feel…"

Eli looked at him oddly, "I can't do that. Three years of friendship will go down the drain."

Sav scoffed, "So you're just going to bury these feelings?"

Eli's eyes widened, "That could work…"

"Uh… I was kidding…" Sav said.

"But it works," Eli insisted, "Besides, these feelings are recent. I'm sure they'll go away within time."

"Did you ever feel this way when Clare was with K.C.?" Drew asked.

Eli glared at him.

"It's just that… you punched K.C. and all…" Drew said softly.

Eli remained silent.

"Almost as good as my comics…" Adam whispered.

* * *

**A/N: Like I said earlier, two more chapters from now…**

**Please review!**


	13. Double Date?

**A/N: Degrassi = not mine. But if it were mine… Oh man! Haha.**

***Thank you again for the reviews, alerts, and faves! You have no idea how much they make me smile. I'm soooo happy that you are all enjoying this story!**

* * *

Drew went back to the table with two drinks in his hands.

"A strawberry shake for you," he sat down across from Alli.

She smiled, "Thanks."

"You look great," Drew complimented.

"Oh, this old thing," she motioned at her outfit.

They shared a laugh.

"This is nice," Alli said, "I'm glad we were finally able to go on a date."

Drew smiled shyly at her.

The bell made a ding, indicating someone had just walked in. Out of habit, Drew and Alli looked.

"Clare and Owen?" Alli questioned, "What's this about?"

"Don't look at me, I don't know! It's not like Eli – anyone! Told me they would be coming here. It's just a coincidence! Pure coincidence…" Drew started to rant.

She gave him a funny look but dismissed his behavior.

"Would it be ok if I switched seats with you?" she asked, "Clare's my best friend and I just want to keep an eye out."

He let out a sigh of relief – they were on the same page. Eli had asked Drew to look over Clare and he was still trying to figure out how to tell Alli, but she had it covered.

"Yeah, of course," he said.

They got up to switch seats.

Clare and Owen looked around for an empty table. They found one next to Drew and Alli. She hesitated before making her way to them.

"Is it ok if we sit here?" Clare asked.

"Not at all," Alli answered with a smile.

Drew nodded – looking after Clare was a lot easier than he imagined. And he still got to go on a date with Alli.

"So what brings you two here?" Alli looked at Clare.

"Tutoring," Clare replied, "But we figured we would get something to eat first."

"Sup, dude," Owen greeted Drew.

"Hey," he nodded.

"And how's the tutoring going?" Alli continued.

Clare gave her a look, "Good…"

"Yeah," Owen answered, "Clare is a fantastic tutor. I got a B- on my last test."

The redhead softly said, "You put in a lot of effort too…"

Owen smiled, "Again you're a fantastic tutor."

Alli tried not to gag at the scene in front of her, while Drew sat there awkwardly.

"You should try their shake," he mentioned, "Alli got strawberry and I got vanilla."

Owen nodded, "Sounds good. Did you want one, Clare? My treat."

"Oh no, that's ok," Clare replied.

Have waved his hand, "Don't worry about it. I'll get you strawberry while I grab the menus."

Before she could protest, Owen had walked off.

"You two are getting awfully close," Alli observed.

"I'm just tutoring a friend, Alli," Clare rolled her eyes.

She took a sip of her shake, "I'm still keeping an eye out on you."

Owen came back with a shake and menus. Clare cautiously took the shake. As she took a sip, the bell made a ding. The four looked to see who had entered. Bianca made her way to the counter and sat down. As she waited for her order, she turned her seat and saw the four.

"Hey Owen," she greeted, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were on a date."

Clare spoke up, "We're – we're not on a date. We were just hungry."

"Right," Bianca replied, "I'm just saying, it looks like you're double dating with Drew and Alli."

Drew and Alli looked at each other – _uh oh_.

"Way to make it awkward, Bianca," Owen smiled.

Bianca shrugged, "Fine, fine, I'll stop. Have fun getting tutored."

She left the four of them alone. After they had ordered, Owen went to the restroom.

He texted Bianca, _Double date? Nice._

Bianca replied, ;)

Owen texted back, _You're going to make sure Eli hears about this, aren't you?_

She answered, _Of course._

He chuckled and went back to his table.

* * *

"You know," Eli started, "When I said look out for her, I didn't mean go on a double date!"

The boys were at Eli's place. The weekend had finally arrived and everyone was taking a break from the play.

"I didn't mean to," Drew replied, "It just sort of happened."

Eli continued to pace around his kitchen.

"It wasn't even a double date," he said, "They sat down next to us for an hour to eat then left for tutoring."

"Then why were they on Chantay's _Anti-Grapevine_ webpage with the words 'New Couple Alert' written underneath?" Eli pointed to his laptop.

"Dude, you actually check that?" Sav tried to hold back a laugh.

"That is beside the point," Eli waved his hands.

"Face it, Eli," Adam spoke up, "You like Clare. These feelings aren't going to go away. I don't think they ever did."

Eli looked at him, "But they have to go away."

"What else are you going to do?" Sav asked.

"I don't know…" he mumbled.

"Talk to her," the oldest boy said.

"Three years of friendship, you guys," Eli reminded them.

Adam contemplated, "So you tell Clare and your friendship is screwed. If you don't tell Clare then your feelings continue to stay bottled up."

"I'm so happy I'm not you," Drew whispered.

Eli glared at him as he sunk back in the couch.

"I'm pretty sure nothing will happen between Owen and Clare," Sav reassured, "She isn't interested in him."

"I hope you're right," Eli sighed.

* * *

**A/N: I know this chapter lacked EClare, but it was necessary. I needed Clare and Owen to hang out more to set up the next chapter. I've said enough… Lol.**

**Please review and I'll update ASAP!**


	14. From Cornered to Comforted

**A/N: So I guess the other one was a bit of a filler, but it was needed so you can see more interaction between Clare and Owen. You'll see why in this chapter. **

* * *

_Hey panel. Meet at the auditorium to finalize a few details about the play. See you in 5 :) –HJ_

Clare sighed at the text. It was Friday after school and she wanted nothing more than to go home, curl up under the covers to read a book, and meet with Alli later. She picked up her bag and started walking to the auditorium.

Clare opened the door and set her bag on the stage. She was the first to arrive and to make time go faster, she started to put away props and papers. She was sure five minutes had gone by and the other three had yet to arrive. She continued to clean up.

"Hey."

The voice startled her.

Clare turned around to see Owen leaning by the door.

"Hi Owen," she smiled.

"What are you up to?" he asked.

"Holly J called for a panel meeting," she said, "We were supposed to meet give minutes ago, but I guess they're still busy."

"Ahh," he made his way to her, "Well, I'll keep you company while you wait. I wouldn't want you to be here by yourself."

Clare smiled, "Thanks."

She turned back around and continued her cleaning. A part of her was relieved that Owen was there, but another part of her felt uncomfortable. She had never been alone with him before. Clare tried to ignore the latter feeling.

Owen kept his eyes on her. He watched as she arranged papers, her back to him. He smirked – now would be a good time. He slowly walked to her. He kept a distance but slowly lowered his head to her ear.

"I think you've arranged those papers enough," he whispered.

Clare tensed. She clutched the papers. Owen smirked and continued. He took a small step towards her, practically touching her back to his front. Clare's heart raced. She felt uncomfortable with their distance.

"I'm sure Holly J wouldn't mind me cleaning up," she replied.

He chuckled, "Why don't you just relax and wait for them?"

Clare remained frozen in her spot. Her mind was racing with thoughts but her body couldn't do anything.

"Come on, Clare…" Owen put a hand on her should. She continued to tense up. It took all of her power to shrug his hand off. Owen then placed a hand on her other shoulder. She shook that one off too.

"Owen," Clare finally found her voice, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," he whispered, "Just keeping my tutor… company."

She stuttered, "The others mi – might be here soon. S – so you can go."

"I can't leave you alone," he started to lean towards her, "What if… something happens."

Clare tried to fight him off and ended up turning around. She noticed how close they were. He was practically pressed up against her. She was cornered by the stage. Owen put a hand on the edge of the stage. His other hand started to trace her face.

"I can't let anything happen to you… can I?" he leaned in again.

"Owen… please…" she could feel her heart beat faster.

"Why are you breathless?" he taunted.

"Please… don't…" she could feel tears forming in her eyes.

He lifted her chin, "You're a great tutor, Clare. Have I told you that? You're so sweet and patient. How can I… return the favor?"

Clare tried to back away from him, but it was useless. Owen continued to get closer. His face hovered over hers. He held her face in place with his fingers. She closed her eyes in fear of what was coming next.

"Let. Her. Go."

Owen turned around to see who was there. Clare peeked to her right. She saw Sav, Holly J, and Fiona standing at the entrance. Sav had his fists clenched, Holly J gave Owen an icy glare, Fiona flashed Clare a sympathetic look.

"Step away from her, Owen," Sav spoke up.

"Or what?" Owen smirked.

Sav took a step, "Clare is like my sister. You touch her and I will punch you."

Owen scoffed, "I'd like to see you try."

Sav made quick strides up to Owen, who met him halfway. Holly J stepped in.

"Guys," she stepped between them, "Principal Simpson will be here any minute for the meeting and the last thing he needs to see is a fight."

Sav slowly unclenched his fists as Owen backed off.

"This isn't even worth my time," Owen scoffed.

"Just don't go near her again," Sav warned.

Owen rolled his eyes before leaving the auditorium. Fiona had made her way to Clare and put a reassuring arm around her.

**(A/N: See? I couldn't have Owen be all creepy out of nowhere… it needed to build up. Anyway, keep reading lol)**

* * *

Eli had just gotten off the phone with Sav and immediately raced to Clare's house. Sav told him what happened and he knew there were two things he had to do: 1) See if Clare was ok; 2) Beat the crap out of Owen.

He knocked on the door and waited impatiently. Clare opened it.

"Eli, hey," she greeted.

"He didn't hurt you, right?" Eli got straight to the point.

She knew what he was talking about, "No, he didn't. I was a bit shaken by his advances, but I'll be ok."

"I am going to kick his ass," he turned around.

Clare grabbed his shirt before Eli could go any further.

"Eli, don't start anything," she warned him.

"He's the one who started it," he clarified, "He made a move on you."

"I'll be ok," she reassured him, "It happened and it's over. I just want to get passed this."

Eli looked at her. Her blue eyes were practically pleading him to just stay in place. He sighed.

"Ok, fine," he conceded, "I'll let this one slide."

Clare smiled at his response and gave him a hug. Her small frame fit perfectly into his. Eli loved when they hugged, especially like this – the lingering hugs were neither of them wanted to let go. He didn't mind staying in that position for hours. He held her securely. Clare enjoyed these hugs just as much. She felt comforted.

As the two remained in their position, the same thought crossed their minds – _So much for getting rid of those feelings._

* * *

**A/N: Will there be more EClare now? Hm… please review and you'll found out! Until the next update! =)**


	15. Confrontation

**A/N: I still don't own Degrassi… but I heard Stephen Stohn was accepting storyline ideas via Twitter? That's pretty cool, actually. Did any of you submit anything? I didn't and I don't know why I didn't :(**

***To my readers and reviewers, you are seriously amazing. You all bring a smile to my face. I love that you love my story and I hope to continue to make you happy. Lots of love to all of you!**

* * *

Bianca marched over to Owen the following week. She had heard what happened between him and Clare and she was not happy.

"Owen!" she yelled, "What the hell?"

The jock faced her, "Hey to you too."

She scoffed, "Way to screw up the plan!"

He rolled his eyes, "Is this about last week?

"You were supposed to get to know her then ask her out, not act like a creeper," she scolded him.

"I thought it was the right time," Owen shrugged.

Bianca was getting frustrated – Owen had screwed up and she was sure Eli would have heard of what happened by now. Eli was protective and Bianca knew that he would keep an eye on Clare any way he could. Her thoughts were broken by a group of students walking down the hallway. She looked up to see it was Clare and her friends – Eli stood next to her, Alli and Drew were behind, while Adam and Sav stood behind the couple.

"It's like she has bodyguards," Bianca crossed her arms.

"Whatever," Owen shut his locker, "I'm gonna go back to getting Anya."

"Owen!" she yelled.

"Look," he interrupted, "I only did this to get on your good side, if you know what I mean. But I can see that it's pointless now so I'm just gonna go back to looking for another girl."

Owen walked away, leaving Bianca to seethe with anger.

* * *

The boys had walked Alli and Clare to their lockers before heading to their own. Eli was making sure Clare always had someone to walk with in case Owen came by.

Clare rolled her eyes but smiled, "Eli, I'll be ok. Alli is in most of my classes and her locker is next to mine."

"And Drew always meets me by my locker after he's done with class so that's two people looking out for Clare," Alli reassured.

"Ok, I'm just making sure," Eli replied.

Clare smiled, "I know. Thank you."

She took a step toward him to give him a hug. Eli immediately smiled at the contact and hugged her back. The two stayed like that longer than they should have. Their four friends exchanged knowing smiles.

* * *

At rehearsals, Sav, Adam, and Eli worked next to Clare and Alli. They all kept an eye out on her. Even Fiona and Holly J glanced between her and Owen, making sure there was no contact between them. Owen was up on stage with Anya, rehearsing various scenes. He was going off script and getting a bit too touchy with Anya. She would immediately call him out.

"Owen, that's not part of the script," Anya said for what felt like the hundredth time.

"I'm just trying to make things interesting," Owen smiled.

She kept her voice calm, "Seymour is supposed to be shy and awkward. You are doing the exact opposite."

He shrugged, "I think this works out so much better."

He took a step forward while Anya stepped back.

"Maybe you two need a break," Zane suggested, "Jamie, Darren, why don't you work on a few scenes together."

Jamie and Darren made their way to Owen and took their spot on stage. Zane put a protective hand on Anya's back and led her away from Owen.

"I don't know what has gotten into him," she commented.

"Maybe he's just having an off day," Zane replied.

Meanwhile, on another area of the stage, Holly J was watching the singing girls. Chantay and Jenna were right on the mark, but Bianca was still messing up.

"Bianca!" Holly J interrupted the routine, "How can you not know the choreography? We're so close to the show."

"It's not my fault the choreography is stupid," she responded.

"The choreography is fine," Chantay glared at her, "And you could have had a say in it if your were paying attention from the beginning."

Bianca was about to say something but was stopped by Holly J.

"Look Bianca, the show is in less than two months," she said, "I casted you in this play and I can easily take you out."

Bianca kept her mouth shut – she needed to stay in order to get closer to Eli.

* * *

Alli, Holly J, Fiona, and Clare were currently packing up to leave. As they exited the school, they were stopped by Bianca.

"So you think you can take Eli from me?" she got straight to the point.

Clare looked at her oddly, "You never had him."

"But he will be," she said confidently.

"Can we get a few things clear?" the redhead was getting annoyed, "You had Eli but decided to cheat on him. Now, he won't give you the time of day so good luck trying to get him back."

"Are you doubting me?" Bianca challenged.

Clare scoffed, "If you spent half as much time trying to get Eli back as you did on the play, Holly J wouldn't yell at you so much."

"Stay away from him," the curly haired girl warned.

"He's my best friend," she responded, "That's not going to happen. Gosh, you're in denial."

Bianca took a step forward, "I got him to come to the Boiler Room with me so there's still something there."

Clare folded her arms, "And nothing happened because he left seconds after. Plus, after what Owen did, I'm pretty sure Eli is going to stay as far away from you two as he can."

Her annoyance with Bianca was growing and before it exploded, she decided to walk away. The girls followed, leaving Bianca alone.

"Dang Clare," Alli spoke up, "I think you two just declared war."

She tried to hold back a smile.

"Is that a smile I see?" Fiona noticed, while Holly J laughed.

"I'm so proud of you!" Alli gave Clare a hug.

* * *

**A/N: I tried to keep Clare in character… I'm not sure if I was able to. I needed Clare and Bianca to have a confrontation, though. There will be another one, though. Yepp =X**


	16. Something New

**A/N: Aww, I love your reviews. They make me flutter with excitement and I'm not even kidding!**

***More EClare fluff coming your way! =)**

* * *

*Ring Ring Ring*

Eli groaned and looked at his phone. He immediately answered when he saw that it was Clare calling.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," she replied, "Can I come over?"

He was taken aback, "Sure, but why are you asking? You usually just announce it."

"Oh. Yeah. Um, I don't know… just thought I'd ask…" she said softly.

He could sense her nervousness, "Well, you know where the key is."

"Ok, thanks," she hung up.

Clare was nervous and she knew why – it was Saturday and she was going over Eli's house. That usually meant that they would nap before doing homework. They had done it before but this time was different.

She liked him. A lot.

Clare arrived at Eli's house faster than she expected. She was immediately greeted by CeCe.

"Honey, it has been so long," she enveloped the girl in a hug.

She hugged back, "Yeah, school has been hectic."

"It's going well?" the older woman asked.

"Yeah, it is," Clare kept her answer short.

"Well, you know the drill," the parent motioned at the door.

"Thanks, CeCe," Clare replied.

With some hesitation, she opened the door and slowly (very slowly) walked into Eli's room. As she opened it, she was surprised to see Eli already awake.

"You're up," she observed.

He smirked, "Well good morning to you too."

Clare blushed, "Morning."

Eli was still in bed – his back was resting against the wall with a pillow to support him, the blankets covered him from the waist down.

"So are you going to sit?" he asked.

She just nodded and walked over to him. He moved to make room for her on the bed. Once they were settled, Eli turned on the television. They were quiet for the most part, except for a few laughs due to the show they were watching.

"So I had an interesting talk with Bianca the other day," Clare said.

"Really?" Eli was curious, "I didn't know you two even acknowledged each other's existence."

"Well apparently she's very aware of me," she replied, "She told me to stay away from you."

He laughed, "But you're my best friend. And we're spending time together now."

She shrugged, "Bianca isn't over you. She thinks you two will get together again."

"That's never going to happen," he scoffed.

Clare couldn't help but feel relieved and happy to hear his answer.

"Why can't she just move on?" he asked, "I've already told her off."

"I don't know," she answered, "It's not like you're that good looking any way."

Eli was almost hurt by the comment until he saw a smile on Clare's face.

"And what is your definition of 'good looking'?" he smiled and went along.

She thought about it, "Edward Cullen."

He couldn't hold back a playful groan, "Well, sorry I don't sparkle in the sunlight and stalk you while you sleep."

"There was that one time you snuck into my room through the window," she reminded him, "Alli freaked out."

They laughed at the memory.

"Seriously though," Eli controlled his laughter, "Edward Cullen?"

Clare nodded, "He's old fashion, sensitive, caring, protective…"

He rolled his eyes.

"And a good listener," she started to poke him.

"Ahh" – poke – "Clare" – poke – "stop" – poke – "I was" – poke – "listening!"

Her constant poking caused Eli to retaliate by poking back. Soon enough, they were tickling each other. Eli was dominating for the most part until Clare found a way to wiggle out of his grasp. They were now side by side as she tried to get the upper hand. She was about to grab his sides, but he quickly caught her wrists.

"Truce?" his voice was ragged.

"Truce," she breathed out.

They moved to a more comfortable position as they tried to control their breathing. Eli put a pillow behind his back, while Clare rested her head on his shoulder. Now knowing where to put his left arm, he hesitantly wrapped it around her waist. She put her left hand on his chest, close to her face.

"Eli?"

"Hm?"

"We've never done this before."

"No… we haven't."

"Is this awkward?" she asked cautiously.

"No," Eli immediately answered, "Not at all."

"Yeah…" she agreed.

They stayed like that for a while until they fell asleep.

* * *

An hour or so later, Eli woke up to an empty bed. He started to panic, thinking he scared Clare off. He freshened up in the bathroom and went to the kitchen. He saw Clare standing by the oven, cooking. He let out a sigh of relief.

He then noticed a familiar smell – blueberry pancakes.

"Did you have that good of a nap that you decided to cook pancakes?" Eli smirked.

"I've had better naps," she replied.

He rolled his eyes.

She turned to him and smiled, "But I'll put that nap on my Top 3."

He grabbed milk from the refrigerator and poured them a glass. She cleaned up the stove and sat down with pancakes for the both of them. They ate in silence. Eli observed Clare eat her pancakes – she would cut it in half, then cut that piece in half, she would fold that piece then put it in her mouth. He usually cut it in half then inhaled it.

"Why are you staring at me?"

Eli snapped out of his thoughts, "Sorry…"

Clare shook her head and laughed.

"I'm glad you came over," he told her, "I feel like we haven't hung out in a while, just the two of us."

She looked at him, "Yeah, it does feel like forever since we've hung out."

"Are you free all day?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am," she answered – due to the play, the students weren't given too much homework.

"Did you maybe want to have a movie marathon?" he suggested, "We can pop in a DVD in my room."

"I'd like that," she whispered, a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.

They locked eyes – there was something different about the way they looked at each other. It was something new.

"Blueberry pancakes? Clarabelle's here!" Bullfrog announced happily.

Clare laughed while Eli groaned at his father's reaction.

* * *

**A/N: Woo EClare lovin'! Haha. The next chapter is pretty good, too. Please review and I'll post it when I can! Thanks.**

***I'm not that much of a fan of Twilight/Edward (Harry Potter! *cough*) but I remember Clare had a poster of him, so yeah.**


	17. Transition

**A/N: Maybe I should ask Santa to let me own Degrassi… But as of right now, it's not mine. So this is some more EClare. I quite like it, especially because it was lacking for most of this story. But hey, patience is a virtue and it is progressing for them :)**

* * *

The next couple of weeks were interesting. Eli and Clare spent a lot more time with each other. Their friends didn't think much of it at first. However, by the third week, they were all speculating.

The girls were at Fiona's place one Saturday afternoon.

"Nice of you to join us, Clare," Holly J said, "I'm surprised Eli isn't behind you."

She rolled her eyes, "We don't always hang out."

"Oh please," Alli chimed in, "You two are inseparable. He drives you to school, takes you home, waits by your locker, constantly looks at you at rehearsals…"

Clare put her hands up, "Ok, ok, so we have been hanging out more."

The girls smiled at one another.

"So what's going on with you two?" Fiona smiled.

Clare blushed, "I'm not too sure. We hang out more… and yeah…"

Fiona leaned forward, "What do you two do when you hang out?"

"Homework, go to The Dot, watch movies at his place or mine, go to my parents' church events," she listed.

"Ooh, sounds like you two are acting like a couple," Alli observed.

"I don't know about that… we just hang out," Clare said, "And maybe we cuddle…"

"What?"

"Cuddle?"

"Details!"

The girls wasted no time discussing the subject further.

* * *

Meanwhile, the boys were over at Sav's house for a jam session.

"Hey lover boy," Sav teased.

Eli simply smirked and walked over to the keyboard.

"So what's the deal with you and Clare being all lovey dovey?" Adam asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he answered, "We're best friends so we hang out."

"Riiiiiight," Sav commented.

"You two act a lot like how Alli and I acted when we first started to get to know each other," Drew mentioned.

Eli kept quiet.

"Why are you being so vague?" Adam asked.

"I'm not really sure what to say about me and Clare," he confessed, "We hang out, but it's… different than before. In a good way, though."

"Maybe you two are in that transition period," Drew suggested.

"Have you two talked about this new situation?" Sav asked.

Eli shook his head, "We're just kind of going with the flow."

"Well, as long as your two are on the same page," Adam said.

"About time," Sav rolled his eyes.

Eli chuckled, "Let's get this jam session started."

* * *

Clare was getting ready to go to Eli's for a movie night. They spent the weekend hanging out with their friends and the school week was filled with rehearsals. The play was less than a month away and they were close to perfect. All of their time was spent on the play. Clare and Eli barely had any time to hang out that week and they hated it. It was once again the weekend – Saturday night, specifically.

Since it was late, Clare's parents offered to drive her to Eli's. They had an event to go to so it worked out.

"Have fun, honey," Mr. Edwards said.

"Tell his parents we say hello," Mrs. Edwards said.

She nodded and got out of the car. She knocked on the door, which Eli quickly answered.

"Hey," his eyes slightly lit up at the sight of her.

"Hey," she tried to contain her excitement.

They went inside as he closed the door. They embraced in a lingering hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck as his arms rested on her waist. Clare smiled at the contact as Eli sighed in content. They released each other.

"Ready for another movie marathon?" he asked.

"Yep," she answered.

He grabbed her hand and led her to his room. They rarely held hands and if they did, they only did it privately.

They settled on to his bed and put the DVD in. It was Clare's choice and she went with a Sandra Bullock marathon. The first one was _Two Weeks Notice_. As usual, she rested on his chest and his arm gripped her waist. They kept their focus on the movie and occasionally took time to enjoy their current position on his bed.

Halfway into the movie, Clare spoke up, "Eli, what's going on with us?"

Eli loosened his grip on her, "What do you mean?"

She sat up, "What's going on with us? I know we're friends, but friends don't usually behave like this – the cuddling, the hand holding…"

He looked at her, "Did you want to stop?"

"No," she quickly replied, "I'm not trying to make it sound like I'm complaining… I'm really enjoying this. I guess I'm just trying to make sense of it."

"I understand," he said, "I've been wondering the same thing too, I just didn't know how to bring it up."

"Are we uh," Clare hesitated, "Are we dating now?"

"Dating?" Eli thought it over.

"Well, I was talking to Fiona and she said that the way we're behaving shows that we're dating," she explained.

"You and Fiona talk?" he was genuinely surprised.

She rolled her eyes, "Anyway, when Fiona was in Belgium, she met this guy who she dated before… er, before becoming boyfriend and girlfriend…"

He kept quiet.

"It's sort of like, testing out the water before jumping in," she continued, "You date and take it slow before jumping into a relationship."

He kept quiet for another minute before speaking up, "I guess we're dating."

She looked at him.

"Well, I've never really dated before," he said, "Bianca and I were kind of friends before we became official. So this is new to me."

She nodded – Clare and K.C. were friends who went to a dance together and kissed by the end of the night, then they became official. She understood where Eli was coming from.

"So," Eli started to smirk, "Does this dating thing include a lot of cuddling?"

Clare returned the smirk, "Yes. Yes it does. A lot of it."

"Good," he opened his arms to her as an invitation.

She giggled and snuggled back into him. She rested her head on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her. They focused on the movie again.

"This is nice," she whispered.

"Yeah," he replied, "So there's no need to rush to anything more?"

"Not at all," she answered him, "We can take our time. I'm happy where we're at."

"Me too," he agreed.

* * *

**A/N: Was that last scene believable? I'm totally doubting myself right now… but I got this idea from my own experience. I was friends with my ex-boyfriend for about a year and a half, then we started dating for a few months, then became official.**

***On the plus side, there was a cute EClare moment. Who doesn't love that? Review, please and thank you!**


	18. Unexpected

**A/N: I think you will enjoy this chapter :) Yep yep.  
Also, I think this story is going to end soon. I have the outline for it and I've got about two more chapters left. However, I will do my best to make those two chapters worthwhile.**

* * *

The play was in two weeks and everyone was buzzing with anticipation. They were currently setting everything up so Principal Simpson could see a full dress rehearsal. Clare and Alli remained behind the scenes, while Sav and his crew were at the sides ready to go. Clare and Eli made eye contact – she gave him an encouraging smile and he winked back. Bianca noticed.

"Still trying to get Emo boy?" Owen asked.

She glared at him.

"You do know him and Clare are dating now," he informed her.

"That has never stopped me before," she pointed out.

Owen rolled his eyes and walked away.

Dress rehearsal was flawless. Principal Simpson loved it and congratulated them on their hard work. Everyone felt a bit more relaxed, as excitement started to take over. They were now cleaning up and getting ready to go home.

Bianca walked up to Eli, "Good job today."

"Thanks, you too," he responded out of courtesy.

"I forgot how talented you were on the keyboards," she got closer to him.

"Really?" he scoffed, "Still fishing out compliments? Don't think that this will make me change my mind about you."

"I'm just complimenting you on your music," she took another step closer.

"You should thank Sav. He's the one who put it all together," he smirked.

"You know," she caressed his arm, "I forgot how hot you looked whenever you play the keyboard."

Eli shook her hand off, "You've never paid attention to me when I played."

"Maybe I should start…" Bianca said in a sultry voice.

He rolled his eyes and tried to ignore her.

* * *

Clare and Alli made their way from the curtain and stepped off the stage. As Clare got to the bottom, she froze – Bianca was flirting with Eli.

Annoyance and jealousy filled Clare's body. She groaned at the sight in front of her and walked towards them.

Eli saw Clare make her way to them. He smiled for a second then looked confused. She looked determined. He now knew that she had seen Bianca flirting with him. He was ready to start explaining.

However, the explanation never came as Clare grabbed a hold of Eli's tie and his lips came crashing down on hers. It didn't take him long to realize what was going on. He closed his eyes and held on to her waist. She loosened her grip on his tie, but kept her hands there. She moved her lips against his, trying to gain control. He didn't seem to mind as he deepened the kiss. He could have sworn Clare's tongue grazed his bottom lip, which he immediately responded to. They were so absorbed with the kiss that they didn't realize that everyone was staring.

After a few more seconds, she pulled away. Eli stood there in a daze.

"Oh," Clare was a bit breathless, "Hey Bianca."

The curly haired girl was pissed off, "What the hell was that?"

"That," the redhead replied, "Was me kissing my boyfriend."

Eli's eyes widened – _boyfriend?_

Bianca's mouth formed an 'o.'

"Good luck trying to get him now," Clare smiled sweetly.

As she turned around to walk away, she felt a hand grab her shoulder. She turned to see Bianca grab her hair.

"How dare you –"

Clare quickly fought back by grabbing Bianca's arms to pull her off. She continued to grab on to the younger girl's hair. To retaliate, she grabbed Bianca's hair.

"Let go of –"

Clare continued to try to push Bianca off, but she just held on tighter. The older girl grabbed her shoulders to try to push Clare down. Before she could fall, a pair of arms grabbed her waist. It was Eli. She faintly saw Owen hold on to Bianca.

"What is your problem, Bianca?" Clare yelled.

"I told you to stay away from him," Bianca hissed.

"Stop living in denial!" she tried to get out of Eli's grasp.

"Don't tell me what to do!" the older girl growled.

Sav and Holly J stepped in to increase the distance.

"Can we not get through a play without a fight erupting?" Holly J asked out loud.

* * *

The girls were in the restroom, making sure Clare was ok. After the fight, Bianca and Owen left without saying a word to anyone. Alli had ushered Clare into the restroom.

"Dang C, I did not know you had it in you," Fiona commented.

Alli smiled in approval.

"I must admit, I was impressed," Holly J said.

Clare felt guilty, "I'm sorry about that, Holly J. The play is in two weeks and one of the cast members could have gotten injured."

"That's what understudies are for," she winked, "Although I still would have preferred if that didn't happen."

"So I'm guessing you and Eli are official?" Fiona asked.

Clare's eyes widened, "No… not yet…"

"But you called him your boyfriend," Alli said.

"Oh gosh, I did," the redhead buried her face in her hands, "After I kissed him in front of everyone."

"Which was amazing!" Alli exclaimed, "Bianca's face was priceless. Why didn't you tell me you and Eli had kissed before?"

"Because we hadn't," Clare mumbled through her hands.

Alli stared at her, "That was your…"

Clare just nodded.

"What if I ruined everything?" she asked.

"You won't know unless you talk to him," Fiona said.

"I can't talk to him!" Clare sounded terrified.

"Well, you don't have much of a choice," Holly J looked at her apologetically, "He's outside with the boys."

After a few more minutes, Clare and the girls emerged from the restroom. Eli immediately walked over to her – she didn't have any cuts or bruises but she did look disheveled. It was cute.

"Hey," she whispered.

"Hey," he smiled.

Their friends left them alone.

"So I'm your boyfriend?" he smirked.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she started to rant, "We were just talking about taking things slow and there I go messing that up by calling you my boyfriend –"

"And kissing me," he teased.

"I got jealous," Clare ranted on, "Bianca kept trying to make a move when you're supposed to be mine – well, sort of mine – but she just kept going and it was really annoying so I –"

"Clare!" Eli stopped her, "It's ok. I'm not mad or anything."

She looked at him, "You're not?"

"No," he smiled, "In fact, it just made me like you more."

She blushed at his comment, "Oh."

"I was planning on asking you to be my girlfriend anyway," he said, "But you beat me to it."

"I guess so," she replied.

Eli grabbed her hand, letting their fingers intertwine, "So does my girlfriend need a ride home?"

Clare smiled, "She'd like that."

* * *

**A/N: Shoots and ladders, this was kind of hard to write. I tried to keep everyone in character, but I might have been a bit OOC here and there. Especially with Clare during the fight. Idk if she would ever actually get in a fight, but I could see her at least defending herself.**

***Please review. That always put a smile on my face!**


	19. Bringing It In

**A/N: I don't own Degrassi. Sorry for taking so long to update. I have a final later tonight and I've been studying.**

***This is kind of random but I'm literally tying up the story to a close.**

* * *

5 days before the play…

Anya was at the center of the stage, rehearsing "Somewhere That's Green" Everyone continued to work, but listened to her – she had a beautiful voice.

_A matchbox of our own  
A fence of real chain link,  
A grill out on the patio  
Disposal in the sink  
A washer and a dryer and an ironing machine_

Chantay, Jenna, and Bianca were in the background, accompanying Anya. They did a few moves here and there, but nothing too empowering since the focus wasn't on them. The girls were finally in sync. Holly J watched with a smile at the scene.

_In a tract house that we share_  
_Somewhere that's green_

"That was perfect, Anya," Holly J smiled.

She returned the smile and walked off stage.

"You were great," Zane complimented her.

"Thanks," she replied, "I still get nervous up there."

"Don't be," Owen jumped in, "You're going to be amazing."

Anya stared at him oddly, "Oh. Uh, thanks."

Owen smiled, "The audience will love you. You have done such a great job with the role. You're really talented."

"I'd have to agree with that."

Anya immediately recognized the voice and turned around.

"Chris!"

**(A/N: Yeah, Dr. Chris. Idk if that's his first name but it is, in this story. Oh, and he's in college. I didn't want the age gap to be too much.)**

Owen gave him a once over – he seemed older than a high school student. Anya walked up to him and gave him a kiss.

"I brought you some food," Chris offered.

"It's like you read my mind," Anya smiled.

Owen watched the pair walk off.

"She has a boyfriend?" he asked out loud.

Zane looked at him, "You didn't know?"

Owen continued to stare at them.

"Better luck next time," Zane slightly chuckled and gave him a pat on the back.

* * *

4 days before the play…

Bianca was currently in her costume, getting ready for the next scene. She scanned the stage and found a familiar face.

"Hey," she tapped his shoulder.

Eli turned around and his smile dropped, "What do you want?"

"I was hoping that you could," she turned her back to him, "Zip me up?"

He rolled his eyes, "You came all the way over here to ask that?"

Bianca looked at him, over her shoulder, "Well, I needed a hand and I know how good you are with your hands…"

"Ok, I've had it!" Eli interrupted.

She was startled by his outburst.

"I'm. With. Clare," he stated, "Do I need to make a sign with neon paint? I really like her and unlike you, she would never hurt me. I will never hurt her either, so just give it up, Bianca!"

"B-but Eli," she started.

He put up a hand, "I'm tired of this. It's getting annoying and it's pathetic. I've moved on to someone better."

Bianca watched as Eli walked away to meet up with Sav. She stood in place, motionless, until a hand grazed her back.

"You should get on stage before Holly J freaks out again," Owen finished zipping the dress up.

"T-thanks," she managed to say.

He shrugged and began to walk away.

"Owen."

He turned to look at him.

"You mentioned something about getting back on my good side?" Bianca bit her lip.

Owen immediately smiled, "I remember."

"Maybe I should be getting back on your good side too…" she looked straight at him.

He lifted an eyebrow and continued to smile, "Meet me by my locker after rehearsals and we'll see."

**(A/N: Yeah, I kind of just wanted them to be stuck with each other… lol. They sure move on fast!)**

* * *

3 days before the play…

Sav, Alli, Drew, Adam, Eli, and Clare were all at The Dot after rehearsals.

"I think you owe me an apology," Alli teased Eli.

Clare started to blush while Eli rolled his eyes and smiled.

"I'm sorry, Alli," he started, "For ever doubting you and your teen romances."

"Let this be a lesson," she said, "When I'm right, I'm right."

Sav, Drew, and Adam chuckled at the exchange.

"All I can say is it's about time," Sav commented.

Eli scoffed, "Speaking of time… How long do your Student Council meetings usually run?"

"Fiona does get impatient waiting for Holly J to finish up those meetings," Clare chimed in.

Sav started to choke on his soda, "I – I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh please," Drew said quietly, "Even I knew about you and Holly J by the second day of school."

Sav slightly hunched into his seat, while everyone shared a laugh. Clare took a fry from the table and fed it to Eli, who happily took it. They shared a quick smile.

"They grow up so fast," Alli pretended to cry into Drew. He laughed and put an arm around her.

"That's cute," Adam said sarcastically to the couples.

Drew got a fry, "Heads up."

He flung the fry over to Adam who attempted to catch it with his mouth, but failed. He simply shrugged and got a fry of his own. Sav's phone then rang.

"It's Holly J," he looked at it, "She wants to meet up for Student Cou – shut up!"

Everyone laughed as he got up.

"Get her home safely," he told Drew.

"Will do," he gave the older boy a fist bump.

"Later," Eli smirked.

Something caught Alli's attention, which immediately prompted her and Clare to start a conversation. Drew, Eli, and Adam had a conversation of their own.

"I feel like a fifth wheel," Adam said.

Eli put a hand on his back, "Don't think that. We love having you around. Besides, Clare and Alli always go off on their own convo."

"Yeah man," Drew said, "We would never leave you out."

"Thanks guys," Adam replied shyly, "I need to find a girl."

**(A/N: Oh Adam… don't you worry your cute head. I've got something in store for you!)**

* * *

Day of the show…

Holly J gathered the cast and crew, "All right, bring it in."

Everyone huddled into a semi-circle.

"I just want to tell you all that I'm proud of you," she looked at everyone, "You have worked so hard and I know you will do a fantastic job."

The group's energy level started to increase.

"So I want you to go out there and have fun," Holly J smiled, "This is your time to shine. You know what to do."

The lights started to flicker. Everyone looked at one another and murmured positive comments.

"Places everyone!" Holly J stood to the side, "Let's get this show started."

* * *

**A/N: Last chapter will be of the after party. I wasn't going to include the play because I figured everyone would be busy preparing for their scenes.**

**Until the next and final chapter… Please review!**


	20. After Party

**A/N: This is sorta random, but I just wanted to bring everyone together. I mean, they were all a part of this play so I just want to complete all of the characters… you know what I mean? Alrighty, here you go!**

* * *

After a standing ovation from the audience, the cast and crew continued to keep their spirits up. There was so much energy buzzing backstage and it didn't look like it was going to stop soon. Everyone knew that there was only one way to let the energy go.

"Welcome to Casa de la Coyne," Fiona smiled at the guests who were just arriving.

Almost everyone was at the loft. Bianca and Owen even got an invitation, but decided not to attend, saying that they had "a lot to catch up on." Fiona didn't even bother asking twice since she was never fond of them.

"Have I mentioned how sorry I am that you had to kiss Owen?" Fiona told Anya.

She only laughed, "It was just acting, thankfully. Besides, I've got my own Seymour right here.

Anya and Chris shared a smile and kiss.

"Ok, ok, I'm going," Fiona teased, "I've got a party to host anyway."

"Thank you again for the invite," Anya said, "And the beautiful costumes."

"Well of course," the hostess raised her glass, "You were fantastic, Ms. Audrey."

She then dismissed herself to check on the other party-goers. She saw Zane and Riley in the kitchen, talking. Riley met her eyes and smiled. She walked over to them.

"And how are you two doing?" she asked.

"We're great," Riley replied.

"You've got a great place," Zane complimented, "Thanks for the invite."

Fiona looked at them, "I expect you two on the dance floor in a few minutes. I don't want you to isolate yourselves."

They all shared a smile as she continued her rounds.

"Awesome party, Fiona," Chantay caught the hostess.

"I'm glad you're enjoying," she replied, "I can see your cousin is enjoying, too."

They looked at Dave who was on the dance floor, dancing with a girl. Wesley and Connor were close by, dancing with their own girls. All three of them had a goofy smile on their faces.

"We're not related," Chantay rolled her eyes.

Fiona only laughed and turned her attention to Darren and Jamie. She felt bad – they felt the most out of place.

"Darren, Jamie," she called out, "Fantastic job today. We couldn't have chosen a better Mr. Mushnik and Orin. The next play we do, you two better audition again."

Chantay could sense what Fiona was doing and helped her out by starting a conversation with them. K.C. and Jenna had just left the dance floor and joined in on the conversation. Fiona then looked up to see Holly J and Sav on the second floor, working the music. She shook her head, not bothering to check up on them since they looked happy on their own.

"Good job today, director," Sav smiled at Holly J.

"You weren't bad yourself," she smiled back.

"I don't suppose I can get a kiss for all my hard work?" he smiled further.

Holly J rolled her eyes but got on her toes to kiss his cheek.

"There will be more of that later."

Sav put an arm around her, and focused on the dance floor where Alli and Drew were at.

"Smooth moves, Bhandari," Drew complimented his girlfriend.

"I could say the same for you," Alli moved to the music.

Drew grabbed her hand and twirled her around.

"Where did Adam go?" Alli looked around.

"He took a seat," Drew answered, "He can't keep with my dance moves."

Alli laughed, "Riiight."

While everyone else was inside, Eli and Clare were out on the balcony. Clare looked at the view from Fiona's loft. A pair of arms snaked around her waist.

"You ok?" Eli's voice was concerned.

"Yeah," she replied, overlapping her arms around his and interlacing their fingers.

They both looked at the view, remaining silent for a bit.

"This is really happening, isn't it?" Clare asked.

"What's really happening?"

"This," she squeezed their hands, "Us."

He paused, "Yeah, it is."

Clare smiled.

"Are you sure everything is ok?" Eli asked again.

"Yeah," she answered, "I couldn't ask for anything better."

"Way to be corny, Edwards," he smirked.

She turned to face him and smacked his arm, "I'm just saying what was on my mind. I'm just being sweet here."

"Well, in that case…"

Eli slowly leaned in. Clare smiled and met him halfway. Their lips made contact and both of them felt sparks. Unlike their first kiss, he took the lead. He tucked her hair behind her ear and gently cupped her cheek. She sighed and slightly relaxed in his arms. It was a simple kiss, but it was still effective. They slowly pulled apart and smiled at each other. Eli then pulled her into a hug, resting his chin on her head. Clare turned her attention to the party. She saw Adam sitting alone on the couch.

"Do you think we should keep Adam company?" she asked.

Eli turned to his left to look inside. He then smirked at the scene unfolding, "I think he'll be ok."

Fiona let out a big sigh as she sat down on the couch.

"And what is the hostess doing here, sitting by her lonesome?" Adam asked.

"I could say the same to you, mister music man," Fiona turned her attention to him.

Adam smiled shyly at the interaction. Fiona noticed and bit her lip.

"Well, I'd actually love to dance but I guess no one has really caught my eye," she mentioned.

His eyes widened, "Oh really now?"

"Yeah," she let out another sigh, "I guess I'll just sit here for the rest of the night…"

"I can't have that happen," Adam stood up, "The hostess deserves to have fun at her own party."

He offered his hand to her. Fiona smiled at his actions and accepted. She got up, giggled, and led him to the dance floor. Their smiles never leaving their faces.

* * *

**A/N: Ooh, wow… I don't know how I liked that ending. Haha. My intention was to always have it end with Adam and Fiona, though. See? Adam gets some love too. How could he not?**

**There you have it. The final chapter. I hope it wrapped up nicely. I really enjoyed this story and I loved all the reviews I got for this story. You have all been so amazing and supportive. Thank you again!**


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